Americans are the greatest shoppers on the earth.
Yet, government prohibits us from shopping for some of the most important needs in our lives like heath care as well as education services for our children.
In the early 1960s, America spent 6% of GDP in health care. So did Singapore.
America and Singapore both reformed their health care systems in very different ways.
America created two single payer systems -- one for old people (Medicare) and one for poor people (Medicaid).
Singapore created a nation of health care shoppers who have health savings accounts and who must make their own healthcare decisions.
Today, America spends 18% of GDP on healthcare and Singapore spends less than 4%.
Singapore has better outcomes as measured by life expectancy and infant morality.
The 20th century model of big government making decisions for average people has failed in healthcare, education, and just about everything else.
It's long past time that America stops listening to the self-serving 20th century reactionaries and undertake true government reform that will put the country on the right path to a successful future.
Showing posts with label Healthcare. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Healthcare. Show all posts
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Healthcare Reality Check
The GOP House has voted to overturn the huge mess known as Obamacare. We'll see if it passes the Senate. Regardless, President Obama is not going to sign. So, the GOP is already starting work on replacing Obamacare with their own ideas.
What should the GOP propose? There are two countries that can guide us.
Switzerland undoubtedly has the best healthcare system in Europe. Singapore has the best healthcare system in the world. Switzerland spends about 10.8% of GDP on healthcare. Singapore spends less than 4%. Healthcare expenditures in the U.S. have ballooned to a whopping 16.5% of GDP.
Neither Switzerland or Singapore have the kind of "socialist" or "single payer" systems that enchant the know-nothings on the American left. In fact, public expenditures on healthcare as a percentage of the total is about the same in Switzerland and the U.S. The government spends a much lower percentage of the total in Singapore:
Switzerland -- 55%
United States -- 50% average, depending on the state
Singapore -- 34%
Why do their systems work to control and costs and ours doesn't? Singapore and Switzerland have similar philosophies -- they put people in charge of their own care, but they also require them to take responsibility.
In Singapore you are required to save 8% of you income for healthcare. You can use your health savings to buy insurance and pay for out-of-pocket expenses. The government subsidizes health savings for very low income people.
In Switzerland you are required to spend 8% of your own money on health insurance. The government subsidizes insurance payments for very low income people. Out of pocket expenses are additional.
Switzerland and Singapore have created nation's of healthcare shoppers, who use their own healthcare dollars wisely.
The problem in the U.S. is that Medicare, Medicaid, and employer paid insurance take financial responsibility away from individuals so people don't have any incentive to use medical services in a cost effective way.
I've been to Singapore. They have a great and very cost effective healthcare system. It cheaper than ours. They also have better outcomes than we do. ditto for Switzerland.
The answer to escalating healthcare costs in the U.S. is not to give more control to power hungry politicians and greedy bureaucrats. The answer is personal responsibility and personal control. Singapore and Switzerland have shown us the way. Are American politicians smart enough to follow? We'll see.
What should the GOP propose? There are two countries that can guide us.
Switzerland undoubtedly has the best healthcare system in Europe. Singapore has the best healthcare system in the world. Switzerland spends about 10.8% of GDP on healthcare. Singapore spends less than 4%. Healthcare expenditures in the U.S. have ballooned to a whopping 16.5% of GDP.
Neither Switzerland or Singapore have the kind of "socialist" or "single payer" systems that enchant the know-nothings on the American left. In fact, public expenditures on healthcare as a percentage of the total is about the same in Switzerland and the U.S. The government spends a much lower percentage of the total in Singapore:
Switzerland -- 55%
United States -- 50% average, depending on the state
Singapore -- 34%
Why do their systems work to control and costs and ours doesn't? Singapore and Switzerland have similar philosophies -- they put people in charge of their own care, but they also require them to take responsibility.
In Singapore you are required to save 8% of you income for healthcare. You can use your health savings to buy insurance and pay for out-of-pocket expenses. The government subsidizes health savings for very low income people.
In Switzerland you are required to spend 8% of your own money on health insurance. The government subsidizes insurance payments for very low income people. Out of pocket expenses are additional.
Switzerland and Singapore have created nation's of healthcare shoppers, who use their own healthcare dollars wisely.
The problem in the U.S. is that Medicare, Medicaid, and employer paid insurance take financial responsibility away from individuals so people don't have any incentive to use medical services in a cost effective way.
I've been to Singapore. They have a great and very cost effective healthcare system. It cheaper than ours. They also have better outcomes than we do. ditto for Switzerland.
The answer to escalating healthcare costs in the U.S. is not to give more control to power hungry politicians and greedy bureaucrats. The answer is personal responsibility and personal control. Singapore and Switzerland have shown us the way. Are American politicians smart enough to follow? We'll see.
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
A Constitutional Convention to overturn Obamacare?
South Carolina Lieutenant Governor Andre Bauer is asking the state legislatures to call a Constitutional Convention to overturn Obamacare.
34 State Legislatures would have to agree to call the Convention. State Legislatures would appoint delegates to the Convention. Each state would get one vote. Any amendments drafted by the Convention would have to be ratified by 38 State Legislatures.
Healthcare isn't the only issue that the states have with the federal government.
5 states have passed the Firearms Freedom Act which declares that the federal government has no authority to regulate firearms that are produced and solid within their states. Several other State Legislatures have introduced the bill.
Most of the states in the west have thumbed their noses at the federal government by passing medical marijuana in spite of federal drug laws.
In addition, unfunded federal mandates have become a rallying cry for several states, who are sick and tired of the federal government's unfunded orders. 49 states have introduced or already passed 10th Amendment resolutions which affirms the states's sovereign rights under the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution.
The government has been using the Interstate Commerce clause to trample on the 10th amendment since at least the Roosevelt administration. In recent years it has gotten significantly worse.
The Interstate Commerce Clause was originally created to ensure that states didn't erect protectionist barriers against other states. Unfortunately, it has become the statists' main method of usurping power from the states and the people.
Lieutenant Governor Bauer is right. It's time for the states to call a Constitutional Convention, which at the very least drafts an amendment that clarifies the powers that the federal government has under the Interstate Commerce clause. Those powers are limited to ensuring open trade between the states.
Until this done, the states can bellyache all they want but they aren't going to make any headway with the growing Leviathan in the D.C.
34 State Legislatures would have to agree to call the Convention. State Legislatures would appoint delegates to the Convention. Each state would get one vote. Any amendments drafted by the Convention would have to be ratified by 38 State Legislatures.
Healthcare isn't the only issue that the states have with the federal government.
5 states have passed the Firearms Freedom Act which declares that the federal government has no authority to regulate firearms that are produced and solid within their states. Several other State Legislatures have introduced the bill.
Most of the states in the west have thumbed their noses at the federal government by passing medical marijuana in spite of federal drug laws.
In addition, unfunded federal mandates have become a rallying cry for several states, who are sick and tired of the federal government's unfunded orders. 49 states have introduced or already passed 10th Amendment resolutions which affirms the states's sovereign rights under the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution.
The government has been using the Interstate Commerce clause to trample on the 10th amendment since at least the Roosevelt administration. In recent years it has gotten significantly worse.
The Interstate Commerce Clause was originally created to ensure that states didn't erect protectionist barriers against other states. Unfortunately, it has become the statists' main method of usurping power from the states and the people.
Lieutenant Governor Bauer is right. It's time for the states to call a Constitutional Convention, which at the very least drafts an amendment that clarifies the powers that the federal government has under the Interstate Commerce clause. Those powers are limited to ensuring open trade between the states.
Until this done, the states can bellyache all they want but they aren't going to make any headway with the growing Leviathan in the D.C.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
A few thoughts on tomorrow's Healthcare Summit
Tomorrow is Obama's big healthcare summit. Many Republicans rightfully believe that this is some sort of political set up. I agree. Obama's strategists have convinced him that the GOP doesn't have any ideas so they concocted this forum in the hopes of exposing their lack of real ideas to the American people.
My view is that the GOP needs to come to the summit ready to aggressively push a reasonable and rational plan for fixing what ails our healthcare system.
A lot of the problems with the healthcare system originate in the state governments. The GOP likes to mention our litigious tort system. This is clearly a state-driven problem. The states have caused other problems as well, for example:
1.) Most states have legislated minimum types of coverage for health plans. Like everything else the government gets its sticky fingers into, what winds up as part of the "minimum coverage" is largely decided by special interests. So, if I don't want to pay for acupuncture or massage therapy, tough luck -- these must be included in the plan by law, which makes the plan more expensive.
2.) The issue with not being able to offer insurance across state lines is also largely the fault of the states that restrict the companies that get to offer health insurance in their states. Of course political payoffs, like campaign contributions have nothing whatsoever to do with who gets to offer insurance and who doesn't.
3.) Finally, most states have legislated out all creativity and innovation from the insurance industry. For example, a couple of months ago a clinic in New York started offering unlimited patient visits for a flat fee of $75 a month. Everyone thought this was a wonderful idea, except the brain dead state government who said it was illegal to do this because that would make the clinic an insurance company.
This is actually a larger problem than just healthcare. All heavily government regulated industries are laboring under foolish laws that makes them uncompetitive in an increasingly competitive world.
The country needs legislation, or maybe even a constitutional amendment that forbids federal, state, and local governments from granting monopolies to businesses or doing anything else that restricts businesses from entering markets. (Professional licensing, etc. would still be okay as long as it was applied uniformly to everyone.)
If we unshackle the creative and competitive nature of the American people, the big problems that we have today won't be so big tomorrow.
My view is that the GOP needs to come to the summit ready to aggressively push a reasonable and rational plan for fixing what ails our healthcare system.
A lot of the problems with the healthcare system originate in the state governments. The GOP likes to mention our litigious tort system. This is clearly a state-driven problem. The states have caused other problems as well, for example:
1.) Most states have legislated minimum types of coverage for health plans. Like everything else the government gets its sticky fingers into, what winds up as part of the "minimum coverage" is largely decided by special interests. So, if I don't want to pay for acupuncture or massage therapy, tough luck -- these must be included in the plan by law, which makes the plan more expensive.
2.) The issue with not being able to offer insurance across state lines is also largely the fault of the states that restrict the companies that get to offer health insurance in their states. Of course political payoffs, like campaign contributions have nothing whatsoever to do with who gets to offer insurance and who doesn't.
3.) Finally, most states have legislated out all creativity and innovation from the insurance industry. For example, a couple of months ago a clinic in New York started offering unlimited patient visits for a flat fee of $75 a month. Everyone thought this was a wonderful idea, except the brain dead state government who said it was illegal to do this because that would make the clinic an insurance company.
This is actually a larger problem than just healthcare. All heavily government regulated industries are laboring under foolish laws that makes them uncompetitive in an increasingly competitive world.
The country needs legislation, or maybe even a constitutional amendment that forbids federal, state, and local governments from granting monopolies to businesses or doing anything else that restricts businesses from entering markets. (Professional licensing, etc. would still be okay as long as it was applied uniformly to everyone.)
If we unshackle the creative and competitive nature of the American people, the big problems that we have today won't be so big tomorrow.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Obama Care goes to Senate Floor
All of the Democratic Senators plus Socialist Bernie Saunders and "Independent" Joe Lieberman voted to send the government healthcare take over bill to the floor for debate.
Lieberman still claims that he will not vote for the final bill if it includes the "public option" (government run program). Is he serious or just posturing???
At one point, Senator Mary Landrieu was making similar noises, but then she got a $300 million payoff from Harry Reid. She bragged about it and then voted for the bill.
This is how your government actually works. This is why we are in so much trouble.
Lieberman still claims that he will not vote for the final bill if it includes the "public option" (government run program). Is he serious or just posturing???
At one point, Senator Mary Landrieu was making similar noises, but then she got a $300 million payoff from Harry Reid. She bragged about it and then voted for the bill.
This is how your government actually works. This is why we are in so much trouble.
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